“All school districts will take action to remove barriers to students’ equal participation in education
without discrimination of any kind.”-Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974.
Equal Education for every child living in this country is a civil right! It is federal law! This is why we
believe that our educational innovations are crucial to removing barriers to learning and success in life
beginning with wraparound services for all children who are at risk.
Our Team, Education Innovations, has researched Universal Preschool, Ipads and Technology in
Education, and Afterschool Enrichment Programs as critical wraparound services that level the playing
field for all students of ages, stages, and learning needs to access excellent high quality education. We
view equal education for all American children to be a civil right in our democracy. We also believe
that these up and coming student-centered innovations are the key to a child’s academic and personal
success in life. The following information discusses afterschool enrichment programs, IPad technology and universal preschool three educational innovations to help children succeed in school and life.
My conclusion made from the many research studies and reports that I’ve gathered is that the most effective afterschool programs for students include several similarities. The first is a staff training period spanning at least one to two years (Durlak, Weissberg, & Pachan, 2010). Successful programs incorporate many different programs to appeal to a larger group of students such as art, robotics, computing, intramural sports, unified sports, the arts, drama, and subject related clubs with personal expression elements or social activities.
The most successful programs worked to increase attendance, especially for children at risk of failing academically or teens who faced delinquency if they did not attend an ASP. Highly effective afterschool programs focused on social skills, emotional well-being, and nutritional needs by offering healthy snacks while encouraging community and parental involvement with a selection of low or no cost courses for students and family members, student led events and exhibitions, publicly attended intramural sports or drama productions, and school-wide social events.
Teach In: Powerpoint, Survey, Video.
Preschool:
The type of learning that happens in preschool has the potential to boost children’s cognitive and non-cognitive skills, thereby enriching achievement and increasing quality of life (Heckman, 2008). Within my research, I have found that there are numerous benefits to preschool, including reducing the number of incarcerated persons and providing economical benefit in the long run. Statistical evidence shows that preschool can also provide ESL students with better opportunities to improve their quality of life and relationships even if they do not speak flawless English.
It has also been cited as a possible education solution to the reduction of segregation and poverty (Ravitch, 2013). Although many studies provide evidence for universal preschool as a benefit, they are not without flaw and opposition. Commentators say that the benefits demonstrated in frequently cited preschool studies are negligible and that the research is outdated and therefore not aligned with current events. Commentators also assert that universal preschool just creates more of the problems that we already have with typical grade school in the United States. They argue that parents may be afraid that preschool is just another daycare, preschool is a way to make youngsters fill in bubbles instead of play or that not all parents want the same type of preschool.
Teach-in: Video, Brain Game, Universal Preschool
IPads: iPads teaching is an assisting methods for school education, it is a mean to help students to better understand what they learned in a fun and relaxing way. Most people have the basic idea towards iPads, which is effective and interesting with tremendous resources to meet needs of all students including students with special needs. iPads teaching a language is carried differently in class depending teacher's interests and technology qualities. However, different voices claim that iPads are overprice, inconvenience which is brought by small keyboards and system flaws as well as technology barrier for teachers. Teach-in: Brainstorm, video, iPads teaching in class
Overall Conclusions
What did we find from our research?
We found that the following tools of afterschool enrichment programs, IPad use in the classroom and universal preschool are helpful innovations. First, Afterschool Enrichment Programs provide crucial non-cognitive and cognitive skill development as well as assistance with daily living needs such as nutrition in a safe structured environment. From the minute the last school bell rings until the students get back to their homes throughout the school year and continuing with summer enrichment opportunities to prevent the academic and nutritional “summer slide” that can occur during summer break. Second, preschool may be an overlooked tool that educators can use to enrich children’s lives and improve their abilities to learn. Finally, IPads help all children learn in the classroom including special needs students and students learning a language.
What are some advantages and disadvantages of our research?
Although we discuss three lucrative innovations some advantages and disadvantages exist in our research. One afterschool advantage is that parents no longer have to worry about having their children unattended and without safe, organized activities to participate in after the school day or school year has ended. A disadvantage might be that there are no federal regulations for afterschool programs, only guidelines for afterschool programs therefore not all programs are meeting the critical academic and developmental needs of the students in their care.
Preschool can be an innovative way to improve the learning of disadvantaged and ESL students’ lives in the long term, it can help children in poverty, and it can boost cognitive and non-cognitive skills for children. The drawbacks to preschool may be that not all parents want preschool. In addition, preschool may be more beneficial for low-income students than other students and is costly in the short term which makes it difficult to garner support.
Technological applications and online resources provide students with a fun way to learn, supplement knowledge, and language development. The IPad is also cost-effective, convenient and customizable; however, IPads and online resources are not very popular, they are fragile, the keyboard obstructs use and some teachers might not use it.
What would we like to explore/research in the future?
If we could go back into our research, we might explore more articles and resources. We would compare very similar successful programs to select elements that could be combined to create even better methods for developing excellent afterschool enrichment opportunities for children of all ages and stages. We would dig more deeply into individual learning areas or developmental areas to determine which afterschool activities are the most effective at improving student life socially and academically.
We would like to have more time to research more in depth about how different regions of the United States might pay for a universal preschool program. If I could explore more about the actual implementation of universal preschool, I might be able to discover a tangible way of implementing it. I am interested if the Obama administration will pass a bill for universal preschool, or if Angel Taveras, a democrat for universal preschool, will implement universal preschool in Rhode Island.
We would also like to know about a school’s attitude toward IPad education and the assessment of IPad education. When a school asks for grants for IPads, it would be interesting if they could evaluate the success of IPad use in education. It would also be interesting to learn about teacher IPad use and training. I would want to look at a case study, maybe over two years, that compares students who use IPads and those who do not in their linguistic and writing abilities. I also wonder about what those who make the applications think about when they make their products for IPads. Do they think about Common Core and policies? What are they researching?
Work Cited
Durlak, J. A., Weissberg, R. P., & Pachan, M. (2010). A meta-analysis of after-school programs that seek to promote personal and social skills in children and adolescents. American Journal of Community Psychology, 45(3-4), 294-309
Title: Learning and Teaching Innovations
Introduction
“All school districts will take action to remove barriers to students’ equal participation in education
without discrimination of any kind.”-Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974.
Equal Education for every child living in this country is a civil right! It is federal law! This is why we
believe that our educational innovations are crucial to removing barriers to learning and success in life
beginning with wraparound services for all children who are at risk.
Our Team, Education Innovations, has researched Universal Preschool, Ipads and Technology in
Education, and Afterschool Enrichment Programs as critical wraparound services that level the playing
field for all students of ages, stages, and learning needs to access excellent high quality education. We
view equal education for all American children to be a civil right in our democracy. We also believe
that these up and coming student-centered innovations are the key to a child’s academic and personal
success in life. The following information discusses afterschool enrichment programs, IPad technology and universal preschool three educational innovations to help children succeed in school and life.
Links to individual pages:
An In-Depth Look at After School Enrichment Programs by Lara Wibeto
The Role IPads Play in Learning a New Language by Debby Zhang
Preschool: The Educational Launch Pad, or a Pipe Dream? by Maya Gibbes
Research summary
Afterschool Enrichment Program:
My conclusion made from the many research studies and reports that I’ve gathered is that the most effective afterschool programs for students include several similarities. The first is a staff training period spanning at least one to two years (Durlak, Weissberg, & Pachan, 2010). Successful programs incorporate many different programs to appeal to a larger group of students such as art, robotics, computing, intramural sports, unified sports, the arts, drama, and subject related clubs with personal expression elements or social activities.
The most successful programs worked to increase attendance, especially for children at risk of failing academically or teens who faced delinquency if they did not attend an ASP. Highly effective afterschool programs focused on social skills, emotional well-being, and nutritional needs by offering healthy snacks while encouraging community and parental involvement with a selection of low or no cost courses for students and family members, student led events and exhibitions, publicly attended intramural sports or drama productions, and school-wide social events.
Teach In: Powerpoint, Survey, Video.
Preschool:
The type of learning that happens in preschool has the potential to boost children’s cognitive and non-cognitive skills, thereby enriching achievement and increasing quality of life (Heckman, 2008). Within my research, I have found that there are numerous benefits to preschool, including reducing the number of incarcerated persons and providing economical benefit in the long run. Statistical evidence shows that preschool can also provide ESL students with better opportunities to improve their quality of life and relationships even if they do not speak flawless English.
It has also been cited as a possible education solution to the reduction of segregation and poverty (Ravitch, 2013). Although many studies provide evidence for universal preschool as a benefit, they are not without flaw and opposition. Commentators say that the benefits demonstrated in frequently cited preschool studies are negligible and that the research is outdated and therefore not aligned with current events. Commentators also assert that universal preschool just creates more of the problems that we already have with typical grade school in the United States. They argue that parents may be afraid that preschool is just another daycare, preschool is a way to make youngsters fill in bubbles instead of play or that not all parents want the same type of preschool.
Teach-in: Video, Brain Game, Universal Preschool
IPads: iPads teaching is an assisting methods for school education, it is a mean to help students to better understand what they learned in a fun and relaxing way. Most people have the basic idea towards iPads, which is effective and interesting with tremendous resources to meet needs of all students including students with special needs. iPads teaching a language is carried differently in class depending teacher's interests and technology qualities. However, different voices claim that iPads are overprice, inconvenience which is brought by small keyboards and system flaws as well as technology barrier for teachers.
Teach-in: Brainstorm, video, iPads teaching in class
Overall Conclusions
What did we find from our research?
We found that the following tools of afterschool enrichment programs, IPad use in the classroom and universal preschool are helpful innovations. First, Afterschool Enrichment Programs provide crucial non-cognitive and cognitive skill development as well as assistance with daily living needs such as nutrition in a safe structured environment. From the minute the last school bell rings until the students get back to their homes throughout the school year and continuing with summer enrichment opportunities to prevent the academic and nutritional “summer slide” that can occur during summer break. Second, preschool may be an overlooked tool that educators can use to enrich children’s lives and improve their abilities to learn. Finally, IPads help all children learn in the classroom including special needs students and students learning a language.
What are some advantages and disadvantages of our research?
Although we discuss three lucrative innovations some advantages and disadvantages exist in our research. One afterschool advantage is that parents no longer have to worry about having their children unattended and without safe, organized activities to participate in after the school day or school year has ended. A disadvantage might be that there are no federal regulations for afterschool programs, only guidelines for afterschool programs therefore not all programs are meeting the critical academic and developmental needs of the students in their care.
Preschool can be an innovative way to improve the learning of disadvantaged and ESL students’ lives in the long term, it can help children in poverty, and it can boost cognitive and non-cognitive skills for children. The drawbacks to preschool may be that not all parents want preschool. In addition, preschool may be more beneficial for low-income students than other students and is costly in the short term which makes it difficult to garner support.
Technological applications and online resources provide students with a fun way to learn, supplement knowledge, and language development. The IPad is also cost-effective, convenient and customizable; however, IPads and online resources are not very popular, they are fragile, the keyboard obstructs use and some teachers might not use it.
What would we like to explore/research in the future?
If we could go back into our research, we might explore more articles and resources. We would compare very similar successful programs to select elements that could be combined to create even better methods for developing excellent afterschool enrichment opportunities for children of all ages and stages. We would dig more deeply into individual learning areas or developmental areas to determine which afterschool activities are the most effective at improving student life socially and academically.
We would like to have more time to research more in depth about how different regions of the United States might pay for a universal preschool program. If I could explore more about the actual implementation of universal preschool, I might be able to discover a tangible way of implementing it. I am interested if the Obama administration will pass a bill for universal preschool, or if Angel Taveras, a democrat for universal preschool, will implement universal preschool in Rhode Island.
We would also like to know about a school’s attitude toward IPad education and the assessment of IPad education. When a school asks for grants for IPads, it would be interesting if they could evaluate the success of IPad use in education. It would also be interesting to learn about teacher IPad use and training. I would want to look at a case study, maybe over two years, that compares students who use IPads and those who do not in their linguistic and writing abilities. I also wonder about what those who make the applications think about when they make their products for IPads. Do they think about Common Core and policies? What are they researching?
Work Cited
Durlak, J. A., Weissberg, R. P., & Pachan, M. (2010). A meta-analysis of after-school programs that seek to promote personal and social skills in children and adolescents. American Journal of Community Psychology, 45(3-4), 294-309
James J. Heckman, “Schools, Skills, and Synapses,” NBER working paper 14064, June 2008, Retrieved from http://www.nber.org/papers/w14064.pdf?new window=1
Ravitch, D. (2013) Reign of Error: The Hoax of the Privatization Movement and the Danger to America's Publich Schools. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.